Toy structure



March 29,1938. q M. 'WARREN'4 2,112,414

TOY STRUCTURE- Filed A'pril 7, 1957 4 sheets-sheep 1 flow/4 War/"gen D.M. WARREN mo? STRUCTURE Filed April '7, 19:57

4 Sheets-Sheet 2 March 29, 1938. D. M. WARREN 2,112,474

TOY STRUCTURE Filed April 7, 1937 4 Sheets-Sheet I5 A March 29, 1938.WARREN 2,112,474

TOY STRUCTURE Filed April 7, 1957 4 Sheet-Sheet 4 Patented Mar. 29, 1938i TOY STRUCTURE Donald M. Warren, west Lafayette, 1 m; Application April.7. 1931, sci-layup. 135,358 r 6 Claims. (01. 4s-21)' This inventionrelates to improvements in a toy structure and vmore particularly toimprovements in the construction of such toys as paperboard doll housesand other forms of toy buildingsp The invention also contemplatesimprove-'- .ments adaptable to the constructionof toy articles whichrepresent only a single room.

. The main-objects of the invention are to provide astructure which maybe sold in a collapsed conditionvand which may be easily and quickly setup into a house or room by a young child; to provide a structure whichwhen set up, is rigid and will remain in set up condition and the partsof which 1 will not tend to come apart and collapse; to provide astructure which may be collapsed to a flattened condition in which itmay be conveniently and practicably packaged in an'envelope instead ofthe usual more expensive box; 'tdprovide a structure which may be madeeconomically and at low cost so as to be adapted to beretailed at verylow prices; and in general,

. it is theqobject of the invention to provide an improved toy structureof the class described. Other objects and advantages of the invention.will be understood by'reference to the following specification andaccompanying drawings (4 sheets), wherein there is illustrated a toystructure embodying a selected form of the invention and certainmodifications thereof.

In the drawings: -Fig;11ls a perspective illustrating a set-up.structure embodying a preferred form of the invention.

Fig.2 is an exploded perspective view illustrating a base part and thelower portions of certain of the walls.

Fig. 3 is a plan of the base in collapsed condition. a Y Y Fig.4 is aperspective of an end portion of a house structure similar to thatillustrated in Figs. 1 tol3 inclusive, but embodying a modifieddetail'otconstruction. i

Figs5 is a perspective F tion of the base element of Fig. 4 in flattenedcondition. i

. Fig. 'fifis aperspective of a wall portionforming a part of Fig. 4,but showing the same in collapsed' condition;

Fig; 'l is a perspectiveillustrating still another form of constructionin respect of certain fastening details. r i

Fig. 8 is an exploded perspective of the structure shown in Fig. '7,from which therrelationship oi the parts may be more easily determined.

i Fig.8 is a perspective corresponding to a portion of Fig. 1, but

'bodying certain other modified detailsiof con illustrating the endporshowing .the l structure as .ie mstruction. v 7

Fig. 10 is 'an exploded perspective of. acorner portion of the structureshown in Fig. 9, and 5 Referring now to .therdrawings the structureshown in Figs. '1 to ,3 '-inclusive.embodies a base member l5.which ispreferably formed oi paperboard of such thickness. as will affgord thede- 10 sired stifiness and strength. The base member, a a

when in collapsed condition as shown in Fig. 3, is provided with scorelines such as indicated at l6 which are. spaced inwardly. from and aredisposed parallel with the respectively adjacent. 15 free edge portionsof the blanla, The marginal portidns of the blank outwardly of the foldlines l6 are adapted to be foldeddownwardly-seas to constitute flangesl1, l1 depending-from the edges of the base which are then defined by Asindicated i lri ag l the said fold lines l6. certain of 'said marginalportions are separatedQv from adjacent marginal portions and. from thebody of the which. permit the various flange portionstocb foldeddownwardly as explained. I J

For purposes which will presently fappeinftongues where desired, areprovided on theedg es R of the base membenthe said tongues beihgcut outof the respective marginal or flange-form 0 The tongueaare. formed byslit-' i ing portions. ting the said flange-forming portions as,indicated at IS, the said slitting being continuous around three sidesof the tonguesoas to define tongues which project .edgewise from,thernain' 5 in continuation of the normal plane thereof. It will beobserved that the fold lines i are interrupted across the widths of thetongues so that-when the flanges are folded body of the base downwardly,the tongues' remainin theirfnormalgo I fiatwise position relative. tothe main body of, the base. The various tongues which arefonned by beingcut out of the foldable marginal -portions are designated 20. Similartongues 2!, 21

are formed on the ends of one-of the flanges.

II which in this instance cQnstitutes the rear' edge of the structure.As clearly indicated-,in Fig. 3, the tongues 2i, are of somewhat less,width than the tongues 20, thisbeing incident to the limited width ofthe foldable-marginal .150

portions on which said tongues H are formed. I As shown in Fig. 1, thestructure. embodies a mainhouse portion and an auxiliary house portion23 which projects from one end wall of the structure.

.Fig. 11 is a section on the -line-l l- |I of Fig.9. I

base'by slits such asdndicatedat l8 1 v 52 I The base member I! constiututes the floor element for the structure and, as shown, it is equippedwith an integral extension which constitutes a floor portion for thesaid auxiliary or bay window portion 23.

. At one end of the structure there is an end wall 24 which is providedwith a pair of openings 25, 25 adapted to receive the tongues 20 whichproject from the adjacent end of the base. The

tongue and opening structure is preferably of the type indicated whichincludes tongues humped somewhat intermediate their lengths so that whenthey are projected through the openings they tend to have a snap lockingeffect for holding the wall member against the end of the base. Thelower marginal portion of the end wall 24, i. e. that portion below theupper edges of the openings 25, overlaps the depending flange H on theend of the base. By reason of the indicated anchorage of the end wall tothe base, the wall will be effective to maintain the flange in itsdepending folded condition against the inherent tendency thereof tounfold to the initial flat form of the blankof which the base is formed.

The 'end wall 24 is further provided with an opening such as indicatedat 26 for receiving the 7 end tongueZl of the rear edge flange. By thusconnecting the rear flange with the end wall,

the rear flange is also held in its downwardly folded-position, eventhoughno rear wall is provided'in overlapping relation to the said rearflange.

At the other end of the house structure, an end wall'21 is provided, thelatter being provided'with a slit as indicated at 28 and with fold lines29, 29 at a suitable elevation from the lower edge of the end wall 21,so as to permit the end wall portions 30, 30 respectively locatedintermediate the slit 28 and the opposite fold lines 29, 29,to be foldedoutwardly to fit against the depending flange portions I! of the base,while 1 the frontand rear end portions of the end wall, I i. e; thoseportions outwardly of the fold lines "29, 29 flt against the end flangesIT of the base. As indicated, the end wall 21 is provided with suitableopenings for engaging the various tongues 20, for anchoring the end wallto the base. The

. resr end of the end wall 21 is also provided with an opening forreceiving the adjacent end tongue 2| for the purpose already indicated.The extreme-end portion il of the bay window portion of the basereceives a separate end wall 3| which is suitably apertured to receivethetongue 20.

The wall 3| is further locked in place by beingprovided with'tonguessuch as indicated at 32, 32

which interlock with suitable openings such as indicated at 33 in therespective wall portions 30.

- A roof element 34 properly shaped and equipped with fold lines topermit its bending to the form indicated, covers the upper end of theauxiliary portion 23 of the structure, and it is secured in place bytongue and opening connections with the walls of the auxiliary structureand the end wall 21 substantially as indicated.

It willbe understood, of course, that the various wall elements and roofelements heretofore referred to and those which will presently be"mentioned, are preferably formed of suitable grades of paper-board andthat the fold lines mentioned may beformed by creasing or scoring or inany other approved manner.

"Ifo improve the appearance of the structure, it is equipped with afront wall having an offset as shown. One front wall'portion isdesignated 35, the same being equipped with a suitable opening 25 toreceive the base tongue 20. It is also provided with other openings suchas indicated at 36 and 31, those indicated at 36 being adapted toreceive tongues such as 38 which extend edgewise from the end wall 21.The length of the front wall portion is preferably somewhat in excess ofthe length of the corresponding base flange portion, so that theopenings ,36 and 31 may each be spaced inwardly from the adjacent endsof the wall part. To permit the inner end of the wall 35 to bepositioned against-the base flange II, the base is provided with a notch39 in the edge portion 40 of the base, the said notch extendingsubstantially in alignment with the inwardly recessed edge portion 4| ofthe base (Fig. 2). The notch 39 receives an end portion of the wall 35and has the desirable effect of cooperating with the tongue 20 on saidedge 4| to hold the wall 35 in assembled relation with the wall portion35, extends outwardly therefrom. The inner edge of the wall portion 46isequipped with tongues such as indicated at 47 for entering the openings31 in the wall portion 35 to thereby lock said wall portion 46 to'thewall portion 35. v A roof member 48 of generally rectangular form andprovided with a'lengthwise extending fold line is adapted to be folded-to flt the peaked upper ends of the end walls. The said roof member maybe fastened in place by the provision of openings such as indicated at49 for receiving tongues such as 50 which project upwardly from the saidpeaked upper edges of the end walls 24 and 21. The front edge of theroof may be slotted at 5| to embrace the thickness of the wall portionand whereby the said wallportion is more firmly held against unfoldingmovement.

It will, of course, be understood that the various folded parts have anormal tendency to spring back from their fully folded position (usuallyat right angles to the portions from which they extend) to initial flatposition. This is true even though the fold lines be made by slittingthe paper-board stock part way through its thickness which produces asharp fold which enhances the appearance of the structure. It will bealso understood that the various wall, the roof and the floor parts ofthe structure, may be suitably embossed to represent doors, windows,brick, shingling, interior trim and other designs appropriate to thevarious portions of the structure.

The described structure when set up has been found to be surprisinglyrigid and stable. It has the desirable advantage that when disassembledthe base may be unfolded to the flat condition illustrated in Fig. 3,whereupon the various other parts of the structure may be stacked on topof the flattened base preparatory to wrapping or packaging, for examplein a conventional envelope. The interconnection of the various wallswith each other and with the roof structure serves to prevent the saidwalls from waveringlinwardly or outwardly, so that they are rigidlymaintained in the substantially vertical position desired. Due to theireffective attachment to the edges of the base, the lower marginalportions of the n are of such width that'whe n the structural? placed ona table surface or floor, they rest on the same so as toreliev e thewall portions of any duty of supporting the structure fromflthe flangesl1 substantially as described inconnection with Fig. 3, but the rearflange ll is not provided with end tongues such as the tongues 2i.Instead, tongues such as indicatedat 52 are provided near the ends ofthe base, substantially in the same manner that the tongues 20 areprovided, and the end wall 53 is provided with a foldable rear edgeportion 54 which is adapted to be folded around the back edge of thestructure to overlap the adjacent end portion of therear flange H Thesaid wall portion 54 is equipped with an opening 55 for receiving thetongue 52 to lock the wall in said overlapping relation to the Thestructure shown in Figs. 7 and 8 embodies still another detail ofconstruction for maintaining the base flanges in their folded condition.In

, this form of construction the endv flanges l 1 are provided with endextensions I1 and the latter are' notched as indicatedat 56, the said'notcheshaving their inner edges, in alignment flange extension I! so asto overlap the adjacent end portion of the rear flange ll of the base.When so assembled the rear wall flange B is prevented by the overlappingupper portion of the flange end extension l1 from unfolding. Hence, therear flange ll of the base iseffectively maintained in its foldedcondition. A front wall 60 is provided with a notch 5| in its lower edgefor cooperating with the notch or slot 56 in thefront end extension llso as to permit the wall 60 to be assembled with the base so that thelower marginal portion of the wall overlaps the front flange H. The wall60 and front edge of the end wall 51 may additionally be equipped withone ormore tongue and opening connections such as indi cated. It will beseen that the interlocking notched arrangement shown in Figs. '7 and 8effectively locks all of the base flanges in their folded position andprovides means whereby the wallsof the structure may be connected to thebase without the use of connections formed by tongues such as 20 andopenings such as 25. However, it is preferred that a few of such tongueand opening connections be provided so as to prevent the base structurefrom dropping out of the wall structure the house is lifted by its wallsand the interlocking slots happen to be a loose flt as they may becomeafter the structure has been assembled and disassembled a considerablenumber of times.

i In Figs. 9 to 11, there is shown a structure in which the base l5 hasits end flaps I'l provided with tongues such as 2i and its front andrear flaps ll and l1 provided with suitable openings 3 errorreceivingthe said end tongues 21 when the flanges are folded totheiroperative position "as illustrated. The end wall part 63 is suitablynotched or'recessedas indicated at 64 at the lower ends of its front andrearedges to flt'around the end extensionsof thebase flanges I! and Iland it is further provided with a'forwardly extending tongue 65 whichhasits lower edge 86 substantially flat and adapted to extend over theupper edge of theadjacentend extension of the front flap i1 The frontwall is provided with openingssuch as indicated at 6B and 69 for r-"spectively receiving the tongues 2l'and 55 to lock the front wall to theend walland to the base as will be clearly understood. For some purposesit is preferable that the base member l5 be provided with extra wideflanges so as to elevate the normal floor level considerably abov'thesurface at the bottom of the structure, would have to be so far removedfrom the loweredge of-the wall that there might be an objectionabletendency of the wall to spread from the front flange of the basestructure. In order to maintain the tongue and opening connection at thelowest practical locationfthedowermost tongue 41 in Fig. 1 maybe'replaced by a tongue such as indicated at 41 in Figs-{9 and 11. Thetongue 41 may be described as a half tongue and the opening 3'! forreceiving 'siichtongue is'modified high speed and almost whollyautomatically.

Hence, the cost of production is maintained low. Also, as alreadyindicated, since the various parts may be collapsed to flat conditionthey may be conveniently and neatly packaged either by wrapping or byinsertion in an envelope, thereby eliminating the need for any form ofbox such as has been more or less of a necessity with present dayconventional constructions.

Changes in the described constructions may be made without departingfrom the spirit of the invention, the scope of which should bedetermined by reference to the following claims, the same beingconstrued as broadly as possible consistent with the state of the art.

I claim: a i

1. A toy structure comprising a paper-board member provided withangularly disposed edges forming a reentrant angle, said member having anotch therein opening on one of said edges'and extending substantiallyin alignment with the other edge, a wall part disposed against saidother edge and having a portion extending into said notch, a second wallpart disposed against bqard member having a pair of side edges ex-'tending angularly relative to each other, said member being providedwith fold lines spaced inwardly from said angularly related edges forfacilitating folding of marginal portions of said memberto'flange-formin'g' position on the memher, one of said marginalportions having an end extension adapted to project beyond the plane ofthe other when folded to said flange-forming position, and saidextension having a notch opening to one edge thereof, a wall memberadapted to be positioned against said other flange and having an edgeportion provided with a notch adapted to cooperate with said notchedexten-v sion to interlock said wall and extension, thereby to maintainsaid flanges folded and to position said wall relative to said member.

3. A toy structure comprising a flat paperboard fioor member providedwith a fold line for facilitating folding of a marginal portion thereofto depending, flange-forming relationship to the normal plane of themember, a paperboard wall part adapted to be positioned against theoutside of said marginal'portion whenfolded to said flange-formingposition, and tongue means extending from said member substantially incontinuation of the normal plane thereof and cut from said foldedmarginalportion for anchoring said wall partto said member.

4. A toy structure comprising a flat paperboard member having a pair ofside edges extending angularly relative to each other, said member beingprovided with a fold line spaced inwardly from one of. said angularlyrelated edges forfacilitating folding of a marginal portion of saidmember to flange forming position on the member, a wall adapted to bepositioned against one of said edges of said member, means for anchoringsaid wall part when'so positioned to said member, and tongue meansextending endwise from an end of said marginal portion and havinginterlocking engagement with said wall part, whereby said marginalportion is adapted to be maintained in said flange-forming relationshipto the member.

5. A toy structure comprising a fiat paperboard member having a pairofrelatively angularly disposed edges and provided with a fold lineadjacent one of said edges to facilitate fo1d ing of a marginal portion,of the member to angular, flange-forming relationship to the normalplane of the member, a side wall positioned against one of said edgesand having an end extension adapted to be folded to overlie the.

adjacent end portion of said marginal portion when foldedto saidflange-forming position, and means forv locking said extension in saidoverlying position. v

6. A toy structure in accordance with claim 3 and in which the wall partis provided with openings adapted to receive the tongue means for thepurpose set forth.

DONALD M. WARREN.

